Affection
by EtherealSinger
Summary: ONESHOT. BearBT. A discussion that involves mood swings, playful indulgence, and a little bit of bliss.


**NOTE: Erm… yeah. I felt like writing a BearBT oneshot and this is what came out of it. **

**-is a huge BearBT fan-**

**I don't own .hack, and I probably never will. Sigh.**

**--**

**Affection**

"Hey there, old man."

A blonde woman walked up to the Blademaster, who was currently leaning against a tree with a thoughtful expression lacing his mature features. "BT," he greeted her, smiling gently as she took a seat beside him and placed her sorcerer's staff on the ground. "How was your day?"

She groaned. "I've had better. Work was tiring, dinner was awful, and to top it all off my car ran out of gas on the way home." She pursed her lips; The World was, without doubt, the perfect cure for her bad day. Glancing over at the man, her emerald eyes sparkled. "What about you?"

Bear smirked, knowing she wouldn't appreciate his response. "I've actually had a pretty satisfying day."

"Lucky you. Working on a new novel?"

"Yeah." He chuckled, gaze catching her own. She noticed the sly expression he had taken on, and raised an eyebrow in inquiry. "I hope you don't mind that I'm basing the main female character off of you."

BT blushed slightly, an aberrant display of embarrassment for her type. "You don't really want a character like me, do you?" She looked out at the scenery in front of them, hoping for a change of conversation. The Wavemaster wasn't exactly proud of her past decisions and actions in The World, nor was she pleased with what had come as their consequences.

"Why wouldn't I?" Bear's voice was soft and placid, subtly prodding an answer out of her whether he truly intended to or not.

BT shook her head with a disdainful thought to herself. "What kind of person am I in the first place, Bear?" she asked, pulling her knees up to her chest and locking them there with her arms. "No one wants to read about a woman who goes around and deceives the ones she cares for most."

"But ultimately," Bear was quick to respond, "chose the right side… and was able to regain the trust of those she might have upset." He knew what a tender subject they were treading on, and that even one word out of place could ruin what bond they had so recently reformed.

BT was silent for a moment, thoughts whirring in every direction possible. Finally, she decided her path of conversation. "Did… I really displease you that much?"

"Displease?" The Blademaster sighed, running a hand through his dark brown hair. "BT, you never 'displeased' me. I was simply worried for you when you became involved with Crim and Sora, even more so when Ginkan stepped into the picture. I…" he paused, mentally debating whether or not to say what he felt was opportune. "I just want what's best for you."

The blonde closed her eyes, no words of reply coming to mind. Bear cocked his head as he observed her, enjoying the delicate lighting on her skin and glossy hair provided by the virtual moon and stars they sat under. Her player character was extremely beautiful no matter what disposition she was in, but he didn't enjoy seeing her so depressed.

"What's best for me might not be best for _us_," she stated suddenly, breaking the thick silence.

"Best… for us?" The man repeated, confused as to where she was going. "I don't understand."

"The best thing for me would be to quit The World," she explained, jade eyes opening as she moved to face him completely. "But if I quit, our relationship would be done with."

Bear's eyebrows furrowed. "Not necessarily. We could still see each other offline-"

"-But not as often, and… I would miss this too much." He noted that she added the last few words with atypical hesitation. BT shook her head, speaking with an inapprehensive tendency that contrasted her previous sentence. "I'm more concerned about keeping what we have- what we _might_ have alive than satisfying myself." She fully smiled for the first time that night, a true smile- albeit poignant in nature. "Being here with you is enough for me."

Bear's lips parted slightly in surprise, not expecting a soft-hearted phrase as such from someone like BT. However, he decided, it was still brazen in her usual technique of speaking. "If that's how you want to deal with it," he asserted smoothly; she seemed discontent with his riposte.

"Why do you always answer like that, Bear?" she inquired, supple lips downturned.

"Like what?" he responded with an almost insulted attitude, but the woman knew he was merely aiming to indulge by playing her favourite game of cat-and-mouse.

"With such an indefinite way of wording things," she said coolly, mood slowly swinging back into that of her familiar ambiance.

Bear chuckled, placing his hands behind his head and leaning against the tree. BT remained sitting in an upright position to his side, shifting her pose to keep facing him completely. "I suppose it's just the novelist in me coming out," he replied after a few moments of thought, smirking. "I've learned how to make my characters converse in such a way, so it's natural I apply those skills in my own chats."

BT sighed, but couldn't help the small grin that laced her features. "If that's how you like to play it."

"It is."

They were quiet for the next couple of minutes, each lost in their own mindset. BT was simply musing about how her mood had changed drastically through their discussion; Bear was still studying the woman herself. Refocusing his attention on their atmosphere, he glanced up at the velvety night sky. Billions of stars twinkled above, and he could easily pick out a few constellations based off those in the real world. He leaned up from his position against the tree as to get a better view, noticing the moon that the lower, leafy branches had prevented him from seeing.

BT detected his sudden interest in the skies of The World, and followed his interest upwards. One of her favourite characteristics of the game was the detailed scenery, the night sky reigning as the most fascinating. "It's something, isn't it?" she commented, redirecting her attention to the handsome Blademaster sitting beside her. He caught her gaze.

"It's something, alright," the man replied in a fond manner and smiled amply, enjoying the way her emerald eyes widened. The aura around them differed from its previously playful mood to serious and emotional, and BT found herself leisurely being drawn closer to her companion. She tilted her head as he did the same in the opposite direction; her eyelids fluttered to a close as she felt his lips closing in against her own.

They stayed in such a pose for a sweet instant, both players completely forgetting about anything but the other. "Bear," BT whispered as the kiss was broken; she appeared more disheartened than anything. He opened his mouth to question it, but she got to the answer faster. "It's only a game," she murmured, trying to ignore the butterflies still rising in her stomach, like a teenage girl having just received her first kiss.

It seemed she wanted to add more- however, Bear wouldn't stand for it. "BT," he presaged, hand finding hers. Their fingers laced at once, and the Wavemaster realized she already knew what he was going to say. "It may be a game, yet there are players behind our avatars feeding the emotions and actions into these characters. It's not stern reality, although it has every element, every aspect of our real world." He moved closer, placing another chaste kiss on her glossy lips. "And for now, it's good enough for me."

BT wasn't sure what to make of his words at first, nevertheless she allowed herself to delve into another passionate embrace, realizing what he meant seconds later.

_And for now, it's good enough for me…_

She couldn't agree more.

**--**

**NOTE: Some of you know what he meant. Others of you might take a while figuring it out. **


End file.
